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1、精选优质文档-倾情为你奉上第一集The last hidden world,China. For centuries, travellers to China have told tales of magical landscapes and surprising creatures. Chinese civilisation is the worlds oldest and today, its largest,with well over a billion people. Its home to more than distinct ethnic groups and a wide ra

2、nge of traditional lifestyles, often in close partnership with nature. We know that China faces immense social and environmental problems. But there is great beauty here, too. China is home to the worlds highest mountains, vast deserts ranging from searing hot to mind-numbing cold. Steaming forests

3、harbouring rare creatures. Grassy plains beneath vast horizons. And rich tropical seas. Now for the first time ever, we can explore the whole of this great country, meet some of the surprising and exotic creatures that live here and consider the relationship of the people and wildlife of China to th

4、e remarkable landscape in which they live. This is wild China. Our exploration of China begins in the warm, subtropical south. On the Li River, fishermen and birds perch on bamboo rafts, a partnership that goes back more than a thousand years. This scenery is known throughout the world, a recurring

5、motif in Chinese paintings. And a major tourist attraction. The south of China is a vast area, eight times larger than the UK. Its a landscape of hills but also of water. It rains here for up to days a year, and standing water is everywhere. In the floodplain of the Yangtze River, black-tailed godwi

6、ts probe the mud in search of worms. But isnt just wildlife that thrives in this environment. The swampy ground provides ideal conditions for a remarkable member of the grass family. Rice. The Chinese have been cultivating rice for at least , years. It has transformed the landscape. Late winter in s

7、outhern Yunnan is a busy time for local farmers as they prepare the age-old paddy fields ready for the coming spring. These hill slopes of the Yuanyang County plunge nearly , metres to the floor of the Red River valley. Each contains literally thousands of stacked terraces carved out by hand using b

8、asic digging tools. Yunnans rice terraces are among the oldest human structures in China. Still ploughed, as they always have been, by domesticated water buffaloes, whose ancestors originated in these very valleys. This man-made landscape is one of the most amazing engineering feats of pre-industria

9、l China. It seems as if every square inch of land has been pressed into cultivation. As evening approaches, an age-old ritual unfolds. Its the mating season and male paddy frogs are competing for the attention of the females. But it doesnt always pay to draw too much attention to yourself. The Chine

10、se pond heron is a pitiless predator. Even in the middle of a ploughed paddy field, nature is red in beak and claw. This may look like a slaughter but as each heron can swallow only one frog at a time, the vast majority will escape to croak another day. Terraced paddies like those of the Yuanyang Co

11、unty are found across much of southern China. This whole vast landscape is dominated by rice cultivation. In hilly Guizhou Province, the Miao minority have developed a remarkable rice culture. With every inch of fertile land given over to rice cultivation, the Miao build their wooden houses on the s

12、teepest and least productive hillsides. In Chinese rural life, everything has a use. Dried in the sun, manure from the cow sheds will be used as cooking fuel. Its midday, and the Song family are tucking into a lunch of rice and vegetables. Oblivious to the domestic chit-chat, Granddad Gu Yong Xiu ha

13、s serious matters on his mind. Spring is the start of the rice growing season. The success of the crop will determine how well the family will eat next year, so planting at the right time is critical. The ideal date depends on what the weather will do this year, never easy to predict. But there is s

14、ome surprising help at hand. On the ceiling of the Songs living room, a pair of red-rumped swallows, newly arrived from their winter migration, is busy fixing up last years nest. In China, animals are valued as much for their symbolic meaning as for any good they may do. Miao people believe that swa

15、llow pairs remain faithful for life, so their presence is a favour and a blessing, bringing happiness to a marriage and good luck to a home. Like most Miao dwellings, the Songs living room windows Iook out over the paddy fields. From early spring, one of these windows is always left open to let the

16、swallows come and go freely. Each year, granddad Gu notes the exact day the swallows return. Miao people believe the birds arrival predicts the timing of the season ahead. This year, they were late. So Gu and the other community elders have agreed that rice planting should be delayed accordingly. As

17、 the Miao prepare their fields for planting, the swallows collect mud to repair their nests and chase after insects across the newly ploughed paddies. Finally, after weeks of preparation, the ordained time for planting has arrived. But first the seedlings must be uprooted from the nursery beds and b

18、undled up ready to be transported to their new paddy higher up the hillside. All the Songs neighbours have turned out to help with the transplanting. Its how the community has always worked. When the time comes, the Songs will return the favour. While the farmers are busy in the fields, the swallows

19、 fly back and forth with material for their nest. Many hands make light work. Planting the new paddy takes little more than an hour. Job done, the villagers can relax, at least until tomorrow. But for the nesting swallows, the work of raising a family has only just begun. In the newly planted fields

20、, little egrets hunt for food. The rice paddies harbour tadpoles, fish and insects and the egrets have chicks to feed. This colony in Chongqing Province was established in , when a few dozen birds built nests in the bamboo grove behind Yang Guang village. Believing they were a sign of luck, Iocal pe

21、ople initially protected the egrets and the colony grew. But their attitude changed when the head of the village fell ill. They blamed the birds and were all set to destroy their nests, when the local government stepped in to protect them. Bendy bamboo may not be the safest nesting place, but at lea

22、st this youngster wont end up as someones dinner. These chicks have just had an eel delivered by their mum, quite a challenge for little beaks. Providing their colonies are protected, wading birds like egrets are among the few wild creatures which benefit directly from intensive rice cultivation. Gr

23、owing rice needs lots of water. But even in the rainy south, there are landscapes where water is surprisingly scarce. This vast area of southwest China, the size of France and Spain combined, is famous for its clusters of conical hills, Iike giant upturned egg cartons, separated by dry empty valleys

24、. This is the karst, a limestone terrain which has become the defining image of southern China. Karst landscapes are often studded with rocky outcrops, forcing local farmers to cultivate tiny fields. The people who live here are among the poorest in China. In neighbouring Yunnan Province,Iimestone r

25、ocks have taken over entirely. This is the famous Stone Forest, the product of countless years of erosion, producing a maze of deep gullies and sharp-edged pinnacles. Limestone has the strange property that it dissolves in rainwater. Over many thousands of years water has corroded its way deep into

26、the heart of the bedrock itself. This natural wonder is a famous tourist spot, receiving close to two million visitors each year. The Chinese are fond of curiously-shaped rocks and many have been given fanciful names. No prizes for guessing what this one is called! But theres more to this landscape

27、than meets the eye. China has literally thousands of mysterious caverns concealed beneath the visible landscape of the karst. Much of this hidden world has never been seen by human eyes and is only just now being explored. For a growing band of intrepid young Chinese explorers, caves represent the u

28、ltimate adventure. Exploring a cave is like taking a journey through time. A journey which endless raindrops will have followed over countless centuries. Fed by countless drips and trickles, the subterranean river carves ever deeper into the rock. The cave rivers course is channelled by the beds of

29、limestone. A weakness in the rock can allow the river to increase its gradient and flow-rate, providing a real challenge for the cave explorers. The downward rush is halted when the water table is reached. Here the slow-flowing river carves tunnels with a more rounded profile. This tranquil world is

30、 home to specialised cave fishes, Iike the eyeless golden barb. China may have more unique kinds of cave-evolved fishes than anywhere else on earth. Above the water table, ancient caverns abandoned by the river slowly fill up with stalactites and stalagmites. Stalactites form as trickling water depo

31、sits tiny quantities of rock over hundreds or thousands of years. Stalagmites grow up where lime-laden drips hit the cave floor. Oi! Whoo-hoo! So far, only a fraction of Chinas caves have been thoroughly prospected and cavers are constantly discovering new subterranean marvels, many of which are sub

32、sequently developed into commercial show caves. Finally escaping the darkness, the cave river and its human explorers emerge in a valley far from where their journey began. For now, the adventure is over. Rivers which issue from caves are the key to survival in the karst country. This vertical gorge

33、 in Guizhou Province is a focal point for the regions wildlife. This is one of the worlds rarest primates, Frangois langur. In China they survive in just two southern provinces, Guizhou and Guangxi, always in rugged limestone terrains. Like most monkeys, they are social creatures and spend a great d

34、eal of time grooming each other. Langurs are essentially vegetarian with a diet of buds, fruits and tender young leaves. Babies are born with ginger fur, which gradually turns black from the tail end. Young infants have a vice-like grip, used to cling on to mum for dear life. As they get older, they

35、 get bolder and take more risks. Those that survive spend a lot of time travelling. The experienced adults know exactly where to find seasonal foods in different parts of their range. In such steep terrain, travel involves a high level of climbing skill. These monkeys are spectacularly good rock cli

36、mbers from the time they learn to walk. In langur society, females rule the roost and take the lead when the family is on the move. One section of cliff oozes a trickle of mineral-rich water which the monkeys seem to find irresistible. These days there are few predators in the Mayanghe Reserve which

37、 might pose a risk to a baby monkey. But in past centuries, this area of south China was home to leopards, pythons and even tigers. To survive dangerous night prowlers, the langurs went underground, using their rock-climbing skills to seek shelter in inaccessible caverns. Filmed in near darkness usi

38、ng a night vision camera, the troop clambers along familiar ledges worn smooth by generations before them. During cold winter weather, the monkeys venture deeper underground where the air stays comparatively warm. At last, journeys end. A cosy niche beyond the reach of even the most enterprising pre

39、dator. But its not just monkeys that find shelter in caves. These children are off to school. In rural China that may mean a long trek each morning, passing through a cave or two on the way. But not all pupils have to walk to school. These children are boarders. As the day pupils near journeys end,

40、the boarders are still making breakfast. In the schoolyard, someone seems to have switched the lights off. But this is no ordinary playground, and no ordinary school. Its housed inside a cave! A natural vault of rock keeps out the rain so theres no need for a roof on the classroom. Zhongdong cave sc

41、hool is made up of six classes, with a total of children. As well as the school, the cave houses families, together with their livestock. These could be the only cave-dwelling cows on earth. With schoolwork over, its playtime at last. In southern China, caves arent just used for shelter, they can be

42、 a source of revenue for the community. People have been visiting this cave for generations The cave floor is covered in guano, so plentiful that minutes work can fill these farmers baskets. Its used as a valuable source of fertilizer. A clue to the source of the guano can be heard above the noise o

43、f the river. The sound originates high up in the roof of the cave. The entrance is full of swifts. Theyre very sociable birds. More than , of them share this cave in southern Guizhou Province, the biggest swift colony in China. These days, Chinese house swifts mostly nest in the roofs of buildings,

44、but rock crevices like these were their original home, Iong before houses were invented. Though the swifts depend on the cave for shelter, they never stray further than the limits of daylight, as their eyes cant see in the dark. However, deep inside the cavern, other creatures are better equipped fo

45、r subterranean life. A colony of bats is just waking up, using ultrasonic squeaks to orientate themselves in the darkness. Night is the time to go hunting. Ricketts mouse-eared bat is the only bat in Asia which specialises in catching fishes, tracking them down from the sound reflection of ripples o

46、n the water surface. This extraordinary behaviour was only discovered in the last couple of years, and has never been filmed before. If catching fish in the dark is impressive, imagine eating a slippery minnow with no hands while hanging upside down. Dawn over the karst hills of Guilin. These remark

47、able hills owe their peculiar shapes to the mildly acid waters of the Li River, whose meandering course over eons of time has corroded away their bases until only the rocky cores remain. The Li is one of the cleanest rivers in China, a favourite spot for fishermen with their trained cormorants. The

48、men, all called Huang, come from the same village. Now in their s and s, theyve been fishermen all their lives. Before they release the birds, they tie a noose loosely around the neck to stop them swallowing any fish they may catch. Chanting and dancing, the Huangs encourage their birds to take the

49、plunge. Underwater, the cormorants hunting instinct kicks in, turning them into fish-seeking missiles. Working together, a good cormorant team can catch a couple of dozen decent-sized fish in a morning. The birds return to the raft with their fish because theyve been trained to do so. From the time

50、it first hatched, each of these cormorants has been reared to a life of obedience to its master. The birds are, in effect, slaves. But theyre not stupid. Its said that cormorants can keep a tally of the fish they catch, at least up to seven. So unless they get a reward now and then they simply withd

51、raw their labour. The fishermen, of course, keep the best fish for themselves. The cormorants get the leftover tiddlers. With its collar removed, the bird at last can swallow its prize. Best of all, one it isnt meant to have! These days, competition from modern fishing techniques means the Huangs ca

52、nt make a living from traditional cormorant fishing alone. And this ,-year-old tradition is now practised mostly to entertain tourists. But on Caohai Lake in nearby Guizhou Province, an even more unusual fishing industry is alive and well. Geng Zhong Sheng is on his way to set out his nets for the n

53、ight. :, - :, Gengs net is a strange tubular contraption with a closed-off end. More than a hundred fishermen make their living from the lake. Its mineral-rich waters are highly productive, and there are nets everywhere. The next morning, Geng returns with his son to collect his catch. At first sigh

54、t, it looks disappointing. Tiny fishes, lots of shrimps, and some wriggling bugs. Geng doesnt seem too downhearted. The larger fish are kept alive, the only way theyll stay fresh in the heat. Surprisingly, some of the bugs are also singled out for special treatment. Theyre the young stage of dragonf

55、lies, predators that feed on worms and tadpoles. Nowhere else in the world are dragonfly nymphs harvested like this. Back home, Geng spreads his catch on the roof to dry. This being China, nothing edible will be wasted. Theres a saying in the far south, We will eat anything with legs except a table,

56、 and anything with wings except a plane. Within a few hours, the dried insects are ready to be bagged up and taken to market. Its the dragonfly nymphs that fetch the best price. Fortunately, Caohais dragonflies are abundant and fast-breeding. So Geng and his fellow fishermen have so far had little i

57、mpact on their numbers. But not all wildlife is so resilient. This Buddhist temple near Shanghai has an extraordinary story attached to it. In May , a wild China camera team filmed this peculiar Swinhoes turtle in the temples fish pond. According to the monks, the turtle had been given to the temple

58、 during the Ming dynasty, over years ago. It was thought to be the oldest animal on earth. Soft-shelled turtles are considered a gourmet delicacy by many Chinese, and when it was filmed, this was one of just three Swinhoes turtles left alive in China, the rest of its kind having been rounded up and

59、eaten. Sadly, just a few weeks after filming, this ancient creature died. The remaining individuals of its species are currently kept in separate zoos and Swinhoes turtle is now reckoned extinct in the wild. In fact, most of the types of freshwater turtles in China are now vanishingly rare. The answ

60、er to extinction is protection. And there is now a growing network of nature reserves throughout southern China. Of these, the Tianzi Mountain Reserve at Zhangjiajie is perhaps the most visited by Chinese nature lovers, who come to marvel at the gravity-defying landscape of soaring sandstone pinnacl

61、es. Winding between Zhangjiajies peaks, crystal clear mountain streams are home to what is perhaps Chinas strangest creature. This bizarre animal is a type of newt, the Chinese giant salamander. In China it is known as the baby fish because when distressed it makes a sound like a crying infant. It g

62、rows up to a metre and a half long, making it the worlds largest amphibian. Under natural conditions, a giant salamander may live for decades. But like so many Chinese animals, it is considered delicious to eat. Despite being classed as a protected species, giant salamanders are still illegally sold

63、 for food and the baby fish is now rare and endangered in the wild. Fortunately, in a few areas like Zhangjiajie, giant salamanders still survive under strict official protection. The rivers of Zhangjiajie flow north east into the Yangtze floodplain, known as The Land of Fish and Rice. On an island

64、in a lake in Anhui Province, a dragon is stirring. This is the ancestral home of Chinas largest and rarest reptile, a creature of mystery and legend. Dragon eggs are greatly prized. These babies need to hatch out quick! It would seem someone is on their trail. For a helpless baby reptile, imprisoned

65、 in a leathery membrane inside a chalky shell, the process of hatching is a titanic struggle. And time is running out. Its taken two hours for the little dragon to get its head out of the egg. It needs to gather its strength now, for one final, massive push. Free at last, the baby Chinese alligators

66、 instinctively head upwards towards the surface of the nest and the waiting outside world. But the visitors are not what they seem. She Shizhen and her son live nearby. She has been caring for her local alligators for over years, so she had a fair idea when the eggs were likely to hatch. Back home, shes built a pond surrounded by netting to keep out predators, where her charges will spend the next six months until theyr